The last week

I leave Korea in 4 days. The last few weeks have been crazy and surreal. It is strange when you are seeing people that you know you will never see again. Don't get me wrong I may see a few of them again but I will never see most of the people I have met again. Thats one of the strangest things about teaching English in a foreign country,there is a constant flow of old people leaving and new ones coming, nothing is permanent its a constant state of flux.

There is a lot to do before you leave, you have to pack,sell things,give things away,ship boxes home, fill out lots of paperwork for pensions,plan for your next job,schedule your travel plans, attend many going away events and say goodbye to a lot of people and places.

I am mostly packed at this point, I haven't actually put my things in my bag because I'm wearing the clothes I have left at this point,there the same ones I'm taking on my trip home,which is 25 days long.(I'll talk about that later) I have sold all the things I need to sell except my scooter,which was sold but the guy who was going to buy it just backed out at the last minute,so I'm a little stressed about that,but I should be able to sell it to the dealer or maybe someone else. The problem with selling it to the dealer is that changing a title over in a foreign country isn't easy and it may require me to have to buy a name stamp,which I might not have time to get before I leave. I have also given most of my things away already. I have already shipped boxes home to the States,I have 2 more boxes left which are already packed which I will send to Taiwan where I'm teaching next year. It costs about $30 a box if you ship them by boat which takes 5-6 weeks or more to get there. I had to ship almost everything I own because I don't want to lug extra things with me on my trip home.

In order to get your pension money,which is around $2000 you have to go to the pension office and fill out paperwork and give them your bank account info so they can wire the money to your account in your home country,the money takes about 6 weeks to get after you apply and you cant apply until after your second to last paycheck has been processed by the office,so if your on top of it the soonest you can get it is about 3 weeks after your contract is finished. Only Americans and Canadians can get the pension, Brits and Australians can only apply to have it count as a year on their national pension plans in their home country. But my director said Australians might be eligible to get the money in the future so check on this if it applies to you. I also have had to fill out paperwork to obtain my Taiwan visa which was extensive.

As far as my travel plans go I have been planning these for months now. My sister, our friend Rachael and I are going to Australia,New Zealand and Hawaii. I'm also going to Tokyo on my own before I meet them in Cairns, Australia.(the great barrier reef) The trip is 25 days and has required a lot of planning for flights, accommodations and activities. In Tokyo I'm going to staying a capsule hotel which I have always wanted to do it's a 1x1x3 meter room with a bed that has a TV,Stereo and a phone in it. It costs $40-50 which is a bargain in Tokyo. In Cairns I'm spending my first 3 nights at a highly rated hostel,which I prefer to hotels as you meet a lot more people that way. I did book my own room there. It is $50 a night. Then I am doing 2 nights and 3 days diving on a boat on the great barrier reef, I'm getting my Padi SCUBA certification. My sister and Rachael arrive the same day I board the boat but I won't join them until there 3rd day in Cairns. One I join them then it's 4 star hotels the last 2 nights in Cairns and in Christchurch, Queenstown, Sydney and Honolulu.

I have already had 2 going away parties(work and a small one for some Korean friends and a co-worker who is leaving for vacation before i leave) and my main one for my friends is Saturday night at the Tomato Brau an all the micro-brewed beer you can drink and all the food you can eat buffet. It's $19 and its from 6:30-10:30. There are 3 beers and there all delicious. Also the buffet has sushi, steak, shrimp, pasta, salad and many more things. After that were going to the bar we always hang out at called Psycho then I get on a bus at 3:30am and go to Seoul to fly out at 10:15am.

I also managed to win at my last poker night,its always good to go out with a win...

Thailands Southern Islands

Back in February for the Chinese new year I spent 10 days in Thailand. It was my second time to Thailand, the first time I went to Bangkok and up north to Chang Mai. This time I went down south to 3 islands on the eastern side of Thailand. I flew into Ko Samui international airport after a 4 hour layover in Bangkok's airport. Then I went to Ko Pha Ngan by ferry,this island is famous for its full moon beach parties. Finally I went to Ko Tao which is famous for its diving.

I left Korea with my friend Michael who had just finished his contract and was traveling home. We had originally planned to travel together but we decided on the bus ride to the airport that we each had different plans, he decided to go to Nepal and hike to the base camp of Mount Everest before heading to Australia and then back home to the States. I decided I wanted a relaxing island vacation with little adventure and lot's of R & R.

Flying into Ko Samui is one of the best parts of the trip, I have traveled to many airports in the world, my best guess is around 50 of them. I have to say that the Ko Samui airport is by far the best in the world. The landscape and vies are perfect but the airport itself is more like a 5 star resort than an airport. There are ponds,gardens, and lazy boy like shaded recliners everywhere. Also when you are waiting for your flight they have free food,drinks,Internet and enough couches,chairs and gardens for everyone waiting to have a seat and a great view. There also in the process of building a large shopping area between the arrival and departure gates. The airport is a great place to spend a few hours,which you might have to while waiting for cheap bus transport.

On my bus I met a guy from Norway and he had been to Samui before, so he said he would show me around and I ended up hanging out with him and his group of about 10 friends for my first 3 days. We stayed in Hat Chaweng which is the busiest beach on Ko Samui. We stayed at some bungalows which where about 150 feet from the ocean. They were not the nicest places but they were in a great location,they were very clean,had AC and satellite TV and they were only $25 a night, it was a great deal. We were located about a 5 minute walk from the main night club area,just far enough away that you couldn't hear anything except the ocean. He knew a Thai girl and it turned out that her 2 best friends were working at a beach front office selling tours and jet ski rentals in the building next to our resort. When we were eating breakfast on the beach deck we could knock on the window of their office. So we hung out with the three of them a lot. It was fun but it was a touristy location so after 3 days I decided to go check out Koh Pha Ngan.

I took a ferry to Koh Pha Ngan and I lucked out because it docked in Hat Rin, which is not a very big dock but it is considered the backpackers party town. It's where the full moon party beach is and it has a lot of hotel,bungalows and entertainment options. On the ferry over I met to American girls(the first Americans I had met on my trip),most of the people there are European or Australian. They found a really good deal for a luxury hotel, called the Drop In Resort. Drop In has a resort and several bars and spa's on these islands. We got a really good deal,this place was 4 star,it had everything and we got a buy 2 nights get the 3rd free deal,plus a discount. It was only $31 a night and this resort had a pool, spa, concierge, rentals, Internet, satellite TV, AC, free breakfast buffet (which i only got up in time for once,but it was delicious) and luxury accommodations.

Hat Rin was great it had so many western and middle eastern style restaurants that I finally got to eat some real western food, Korea is lacking in this and where you can get it,you pay a lot for it. I ate falafel, humus, pizza and subs for every meal. They also had really good Thai food vendors on the street and fruit smoothie stands. There was also easily 100 bars in this town,so the night life was fun. It was very laid back here,not crowded but I also wasn't here for one of the full moon parties,which apparently turns this peaceful little town into a New Orleans style party atmosphere. I rented a scooter here and drove all around the Island. I saw a lot of beautiful and secluded beaches and inland waterfalls. There was a black moon party while I was on the Island. It was fun and held on a different beach. they celebrate all 4 cycles of the moon here,but the party I went to is nothing like a full moon bash. After 3 days here I decided to head of to Koh Tao which is the smallest and least developed of these 3 islands. I got a ferry out of Thong Sala,the capital of the Island and also the main peer for boats.

While waiting for my boat I met a scuba instructor who convinced me to stay at his resort and go SCUBA diving with his company called Asia Divers. I had seen many advertisements for Asia divers on my trip already and I considered the fact that they had an office at the peer an omen. So I booked a 1 day experience diving trip with them,this also got me a discounted room at the resort. I got a room for $31 a night again,there were rooms for $15 w/o air con. But my room was a sweet,it had a balcony overlooking the pool and it was huge with aircon and satellite TV, it was nice, but not as nice as my room at the Drop In. Asia Divers is one of the largest dive resorts on Koh Tao. They had a really professional operation and a great location. Just a few minutes walk from the downtown party area. Koh Tao is by far the least developed of the 3 islands but it still had everything one could want. I had the best time here out of all 3 of the islands. It was the most relaxed atmosphere and the people here were the friendliest,tourists included. I stayed in Mae Haad Bay,the busiest location on the island.

The diving was great and I can't wait to do it again, I was only able to dive for one day because you cant dive 24 hours before you fly. I went on 2 dives. The first was in the Japanese Garden and the Twin Rocks there was a lot of brain coral there and one of those striped fish from Finding Nemo. My instructor was British and he was fun. A good sense of humor and he spoke English, I was afraid I might get a Thai instructor,but at Asia Divers you get an English one every time,that's why there so good. I really loved diving I plan to get my certification soon.

The night life in Mae Haad was fun,it wasn't too big or busy but there was a lot to do. I met some Canadians here and I hung out with them. There were 3 of them a couple who was traveling the world and there friend,she flew into Thailand to travel with them for 2 weeks. We went to a burlesque show,ate a seafood dinner on the beach, danced on the beach and went for a late night swim. It was a blast. Unfortunately, I was up drinking until about 6 am and I had to catch 8:30am ferry to Koh Samui to get my plane home. I slept for an hour then decided to go wait at the dock because I knew if I fell asleep I wouldn't make it. The only problem was the high speed catamaran boats are a bit bumpy and I must have thrown up 15 times in the 2 hour ferry ride, I filled up a 10 liter bag with beer vile puke. It wasn't a good ride.

This was a great trip and it was the first time I really ever traveled by myself. I loved it,it was very peaceful to be able to do whatever you want and I met a lot more people being solo than I would have otherwise.

Mart Drinking and open container

In Korea it is legal to have open containers. You are allowed to drink alcohol anywhere you want at any time. It always seemed a bit oppressive to me that you weren't allowed to do this in most places in the States. We are told that this would lead to drunken chaos and led to believe that this is for public safety,but really it's just another way for us to be controlled by the system. Think about it,how much less would you have to drive drunk if you could drink outside of a store, in a park near your house,or just while you enjoy your walk to or home from your destination. It is very relaxing to do these things,drinking in parks is one of my favorite activities in Korea and it is much cheaper and healthier.(no smoke,although this isn't an issue in many places in the States anymore and no deafening loud noise)

Another of my favorite places to drink and one of the more popular places to drink outside in Korea is outside of the local Mart or convenient store. Most of these stores have tables outside for you to sit and enjoy your purchase whatever it may be. It has become a favorite activity of my friends and I. We will sit outside for hours and talk and drink. It saves so much money and it is much more peaceful than a noisy crowded bar. There have been times were I have been sitting around with 20 friends,singing,playing guitars and talking until the sun comes up. It's really a shame we have outlawed this in the States. But I guess it is our patriotic duty as Americans to make everything sensible and fun illegal....